The Acronym Institute for Disarmament Diplomacy

The Acronym Institute for Disarmament Diplomacy has been working since
1995 to promote effective approaches to international security, disarmament
and arms control. Engaging with governments and civil society, Acronym
provides reporting, analysis and strategic thinking on a range of issues
relevant to peace and security, with special emphasis on treaties and
multilateral initiatives.

Our new website will go live on Friday 27th April!

Check back here then for the fully revamped version...

Highlights

The 2010 Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference was presented as a success, but it did little to tackle the real world problems of nuclear proliferation, insecurity and modernising arsenals. In advance of the Acronym Institute's forthcoming book on humanitarian approaches to achieve and maintain a world free from nuclear weapons, this publication offers two articles(one by Rebecca Johnson, and another by Tim Caughley & John Borrie) that explore recent developments with particular relevance for the 2015 NPT review cycle. Download the PDF here.

Arguing that "there is no credible nuclear threat to the UK or her allies that will be deterred by a British nuclear weapons programme that is not already deterred by the United States’ nuclear forces", a new report "Dropping The Bomb: A post-Trident Future" by Toby Fenwick of the Centre Forum think tank calls for Trident to be scrapped and the UK to move to nuclear threashold status, for resources to be focused on UK conventional forces and for the UK to build on its exiting verification capability to push for worldwide nuclear disarmament. Read the full report here. Read The Guardian news story here

Acronym Institute Director Dr Rebecca Johnson has been at the 2nd South Korean-European SHAPE (Summit of Honor on Atoms for Peace and Environment) conference where she gave a presentation on 'Why States Renounce Nuclear Weapons'. Dr Johnson commented, "While noting that North Korea has reneged on inspections in the past and that bargaining its nuclear weapons programme for food may be only a short term tactic borne out of desperation, this is a brave and hopeful sign from the new leader, Kim Jong-un. We hope the United States, South Korea and other neighbouring countries will use this opportunity to restart the Six Party Talks with North Korea and move towards a longer term solution to ensure the denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula and peace, security and human rights for the people of North and South Korea."

Trident & an independent Scotland

Current debates about a referendum on Scottish Independence have implications for the deployment of nuclear weapons at Faslane, as noted by Professor William Walker in an article published in Scotland on Sunday in January. Read the article here and read speeches from the 2009 conference 'Trident and International Law: Scotland's Obligations' (co-organised by the Acronym Institute) here.

In this illuminating blog for the UN Institute for Disarmament Research (UNIDIR) former Director of the UN Office of Disarmament Affairs (UNODA) and Acronym Institute Board member Tim Caughley sheds some light on common misconceptions about the Geneva-based Conference on Disarmament (CD). Read the full article posted on the UNDIR blogsite on the 10th anniversary of the UN Study on disarmament and non-proliferation education here.

On 27 November 2011, Rob Edwards writing in The Guardian revealed that: ‘The Ministry of Defence is spending £2bn on new nuclear weapons plants before a formal decision has been taken over whether to replace Trident warheads, according to ministers. The revelation has prompted fierce attacks on the MoD for making "a complete mockery" of the democratic process by pre-empting a decision and so attempting to force the hands of future governments.’ Read the Guardian article here.

A naval base being built on Jeju Island threatens to destroy the livelihoods of the iconic women shellfish divers and raise levels of rape and prostitution in the surrounding villages. On her return from Jeju, Acronym Institute Director Rebecca Johnson, writing in OpenDemocracy, says international action is needed to stop the military construction. Read the November 2011 article here

Nuclear Security Briefings

The Acronym Institute has teamed up with other UK-based organisations working on nuclear issues to produce a series of periodic briefings for decision-makers on aspects of nuclear weapons policy. Read the briefings:

In 2010, the Acronym Institute produced a series of key briefings for the 2010 NPT Review Conference and beyond. Drawing on the knowledge and experience of key thinkers, analysts and experts in the field of multilateral arms control and international security, the briefings address some of the core issues relating to the NPT, non-proliferation and disarmament with the aim of enhancing the conference outcome and developing collective strategies to move towards security in a world free of nuclear weapons. The briefings remain a key resource for those working on nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation:

In its October 2010 Strategic Defence & Security Review (SDSR), the Coalition government announced that it would be delaying the 'Main Gate' decision on Trident by four years to 2016, thereby pushing back the the date that the first new submarine wll come into service to 2028. However despite this delay to the main gate decision, the government is pressing ahead with replacing Trident. Several parts for the new submarines have been ordered and ministers have confirmed that steel for the first boat's hull will be ordered in advance of main gate. This has led Parliamentarians to seek information about costs and contracts, but with vital information being withheld, some like Katy Clark MP have accused the government of presiding over a "culture of secrecy".

Published by UNIDIR, Unfinished Business: the Negotiation
of the CTBT and the End of Nuclear Testing, by Rebecca Johnson
details how the CTBT was fought for, opposed and finally negotiated.
It considers how a decade of political and institutional obstacles
have prevented the CTBT from entering into full legal effect, including
the Indian and Pakistani nuclear tests of May 1998, the US failure
to ratify the treaty in 1999, and the October 9, 2006 nuclear test
by North Korea.

After Fukushima, originally published on Open Democracy: "As we pursue the abolition of nuclear weapons, we also need to phase out reliance on nuclear energy. Both are incompatible with our environmental and human security"

In the 1970s, the women’s liberation movement had a badge that proclaimed: women who seek equality with men lack ambition. We don’t want to participate as equals in the violence, oppression and greed of patriarchal power, says Acronym Institute Director Rebecca Johnson. This article was originally published at Open Democracy

As momentum grows for significant progress towards building more effective security in a world free of nuclear weapons, the role of nuclear weapons in national security policies is changing. In a timely contribution to the debate, retired Royal Navy Commander Robert Green has recently published 'Security Without Nuclear Deterrence', with the introduction to the book being provided by Acronym Institute Director Dr Rebecca Johnson. The book was launched at the UN on 5 May 2010 and in London on 16 June and can be purchased from Amazon.

Discontinuation of Disarmament Diplomacy

In 2010, the Acronym Institute decided to discontinue publication of its popular journal Disarmament Diplomacy. Issue No 91 - the final issue of Disarmament Diplomacy - can be found here.